Forever & A Day
by Capt-Leximus
Summary: Casey DiMarco was a soldier, a doctor, and a friend. When Hydra gets their hands on the veteran, she meets the Winter Soldier and becomes his personal doctor. The two bond and no matter how many times he's wiped, her kindness to him always brings him back. The two form a bond that makes it hard for them to let it go.
1. Chapter 1

Being kidnapped by a supposedly-disbanded Nazi terrorist organization was not how Casey wanted her day to go.

Her day started out like any other, panting and sweating with a racing heart from another night terror. She scrubbed her hand over her face and huffed. That had been the sixth night this week. Hours of sound sleep were far and few between for the raven haired girl.

The whining of an animal caught Casey's attention. Merlin, her German Shepherd, was sitting next to her, nuzzling the girl's face gently. The action caused Casey to smile as she ran her hands through the dog's soft black fur. The fluff of his ears and chest were a light tan, but aside from his back left paw being the same light tan, Merlin was all black.

"Well, come on then, let's take you out and get you some food," Casey said, getting out of bed and stretching.

Her joints cracked and popped, releasing the tension and stiffness. She sighed and carded her hand through her long, thick, black hair. Merlin had already grabbed his blue leash and brought it to her. Casey smiled and clipped it in his collar, which was black with small Captain America shields going around it. It had been a gift from her nephew for Christmas last year.

Casey quickly pulled on a pair of grey sweats with GO ARMY down the side and slipped into her slippers. When she entered the living room of the small one bedroom apartment, Merlin was already sitting by the door patiently.

"What if I needed help getting dressed, hm?" Casey asked the dog.

His response was to cock his head to the left, as if saying, 'we both know you're fully capable'.

"Yeah, yeah, let's go," Casey said, grabbing the leash.

After a potty break, the two went back inside to get ready for the day. They started off with breakfast. Casey got Merlin fresh water with ice cubes, for a morning treat, and his dog food.

"Sit," Casey commanded, pushing her hand down, palm flat and facing the floor.

Merlin lowered down and waited for his next command.

"Up," Casey said, reversing the hand movement.

Merlin sat up on his hind legs.

"Up top," Casey said, doing a thumbs up motion while raising her hand upwards a few inches.

Merlin rose up on his hind legs and held it for a few seconds before coming back down onto all fours. Casey's face lit up and she scratched his head, giving him the okay to eat. When he tucked in, Casey went back to her room to change into some work out clothes. She stood in front of her body mirror on her door, pulling her hair back. Tired, green eyes stared back at her, accented by the seemingly ever present black bags under them. In the six months she'd been home, she had lost some weight and looked smaller, but still relatively healthy.

After tying her hair into the familiar tight bun at the base of her neck, she grabbed her phone and attached it to her arm via holster band, and plugged in her ear buds, looping them around her neck. Once she was satisfied with her appearance, she headed back out into the kitchen, readying a bottle of water.

"Hey, you done eating yet?" Casey asked.

Merlin came trotting up to her and weaved between her legs, nearly knocking her over in the process. Casey giggled and scratched his ears.

"Go get your vest, you slacker," Casey said and grabbed her sneakers, moving to the couch to put them on. When they were both on and tied, Merlin returned to the living room with his vest.

The vest was black with several pockets and velcro patches. It slid over his head and fastened under his belly. Casey fastened it and then passed her hand over the patches on top. U.S. ARMY; DIMARCO; VETERAN ASSIST SERVICE DOG; MERLIN; ASK TO PET. Casey's rank patch, three chevrons stacked on top of each other, sat next to her last name.

Sensing her elevated heart rate, Merlin nudged Casey's hand, making her give him her attention. He licked her palm and then turned in a circle. Casey smiled and stood.

"Right. Daily exercise time. Let's go, boy," Casey said, moving to the door and opening it.

Merlin went out first and then Casey, who locked up, and then the two were off.

The National Mall was only about a mile away from Casey's apartment, so the two frequented the reflecting pool for their morning run. They generally lapped it four or five times before heading home.

Today however, Casey's knee had started to get sore a little over halfway through their run, so she took a seat by the pool. Merlin laid beside her, enjoying the sun on his fur. She massaged the tendons and stretched it out.

"What do you think Mer?" Casey asked the fluff ball at her feet.

He responded by quirking his head from one side to the other, his ears flopping both ways. Casey nodded and went to stand, but lost her balance when her knee locked up. Luckily, Merlin was there with his muscles braced. He moved swiftly, catching Casey and staying put until she had her balance. Once she stood up without Merlin's assistance, she bit her lip, smothering a few choice curse words.

"Alright boy, slow and steady home, yeah?" Casey asked Merlin.

He barked and stayed close to Casey's side. It was nearing the noon rush hour and the streets of Washington D.C. were starting to get super busy again. The pair were halfway home when they passed an alleyway.

Out of Casey's peripheral vision, she saw a black van drive passed her. There was a familiar bristle on the back of Casey's neck. Her body tensed and she entered a state of panic.

The black van had stopped ten feet from her. The back doors slammed open and three heavily armed men swarmed out. Casey backed up, getting ready to run, but when the three closed in on her and she tried to bolt, her knee locked up and she went down.

"Merlin, attack!" Casey commanded.

Unfortunately, the armed men were more than a match for Merlin, who was knocked to the side and shot. He let out a cry and then soft whimpers then went silent.

It happened so fast, Casey didn't know what to do, so she settled for screaming out his name. The armed men easily overtook her petite frame, no matter how much she kicked and flailed. She landed a solid elbow to the face of one of them, but the response was a swift crack to her jaw and a needle being jammed into her neck. Her vision swam as the doors on the van slammed shut. The last thought she had was the hope that they used a tranquilizer on Merlin too.


	2. Chapter 2

Sam Wilson led a quiet life after his time in the service. He worked at the Veteran's Affairs Hospital in Washington D.C. as a counselor to veterans with PTSD. He ran in the mornings and spent the rest of the day at the VA.

The current session that Sam was leading had just ended. The sun was getting low and afternoon was fast approaching. May was a wonderful month, not too hot but not cold anymore either, however the hottest part of the day was still the hottest part of the day.

Sam had stepped outside, getting ready to go home for the day, when something caught his attention. His black SUV was parallel parked right across the street, however the dog sitting next to the truck was not his.

He approached the familiar black dog, seeing the vest, his name velcroed to his chest: MERLIN. Sam looked around for the owner, half expecting her to be propped on the hood with a cigarette in her hand and half expecting her to ambush him from behind, forcing him into an impromptu piggy back ride. Neither of which happened.

Sam knelt in front of the service dog, running his hands through the dog's coat, stopping short when Merlin whimpered loudly and gently bit Sam's hand. It was a warning and the small dart in the dog's muscular shoulder made a shiver go through Sam. A horrible thought ran through the man's mind.

"Where's Casey?" Sam voiced his thought. "Hmm? Where is she boy?"

Merlin whined and ducked his head, nuzzling Sam's hand. Sam sighed and cracked his neck relieving the tension.

"Let's get you taken care of first," Sam said, lifting the dog with a small grunt, and setting him in the backseat of his SUV.

Sam had waited for an hour at the vet clinic while they took care of Merlin. The tranque bullet had only embedded itself in his muscle. He'd be sore for a few days, and he needed a couple stitches, but he'd be alright.

When they left, Sam took Merlin back to the VA. When they were in the same spot that Sam had found him, he cut the engine and got out.

"Alright boy, where's Casey? Take me to her," Sam commanded.

Merlin took off and Sam followed close behind.

After a few minutes, Sam recognized the path the service dog was going. It was familiar to him because it lead to the National mall. Both Sam and Casey liked to run the length of the reflecting pool. But Merlin turned the opposite way from the Mall and headed towards Casey's apartment. Sam frowned when the dog stopped in an alley way and started whining.

"What? What is it boy?" Sam asked.

Merlin circled the alley and then came back to same with something in his mouth. Sam knelt down and held his hand out. Casey's android dropped into his hand, still stuck in the purple bicep case. The screen was cracked. A cold feeling dropped into Sam's stomach and a chill ran down his spine.

Later that evening found Sam and Merlin sitting at a police station in the Chief's office. He was a short man and was very round and pale. His blonde moustache had been trimmed and styled, but it seemed to be the only hair on his entire head. Sam's mind automatically supplied that he had had one too many doughnuts, but he smothered that before it could make him laugh inappropriately.

"You say you think your friend has been kidnapped?" the Chief asked.

"Yes sir. She follows a very specific routine daily and her service dog never leaves her side, but I found him next to my SUV earlier this afternoon. I went to her house and somebody had torn her closet apart and broke into her safe. They stole her personnel file and war journals," Sam explained calmly. "I found her phone in an alley by her apartment…"

The Chief's eyes looked bored.

"Look, I can't file a missing person's report for twenty-four hours. Besides, if you said that the only thing out of place was her safe, then maybe she got into it and left. Perhaps she left town and didn't want to take her dog with her, we've seen it before," the man said.

Sam huffed and rubbed a hand down his face. "Look, sir, I'm telling you that Casey wouldn't just skip town! Something happened to her. She's a veteran with PTSD and follows her routine religiously!"

The Chief stood up, his face turning red, and his eyebrows coming together. It was supposed to be intimidating, Sam thought. But the scariest prospect about this man was the fact that he was still a police officer at his weight and age.

"Now, you listen to me, boy! Until you have a real emergency, you'll leave my office and this station. I have real work to do and don't need somebody like you making my life more difficult," he bellowed.

Sam sat still for a moment. His dark eyes searched the Chief. The man had used the term "boy" and "someone like you". Sam's thoughts turned dark. As much as he hated thinking it, he knew that his race was a key element to why he was being treated this way. If he had been a white man, sitting here, crying over his best friend, search parties would be out within minutes. But a black man, begging for help over his disabled, slightly unstable friend wouldn't trigger a search party. No matter if she was white or not.

"Fine. If you won't believe me, I'll find her myself," Sam said. "Let's go, Merlin."

After he deposited the dog at his own house, Sam headed over to Casey's apartment. He began reaching for his key, but he noticed that the door was slightly ajar. The lock was broken but other than that, everything inside seemed to be in tact.

The living room was spotless like always and the kitchen was in perfect order, save for an empty glass sitting in the sink. The book shelves by the flatscreen were in order by author and not a spec of dust graced the black wood.

Sam went down the hall, glancing at the picture frames that lined the walls, one side pictures of her and her family, the other side her and himself, her squad, other friends in the service, the day she got Merlin. Everything was hung evenly and again, no dust touched the frames or glass.

Her bedroom was in the same shape as the rest of her house, except for a pair of sweats on the ground and the closet door open with the light on. Sam frowned and pushed the door open. Inside was a wreck. All of her clothes had been thrown around and in the middle was a small metal box that had been left open. It was empty, but Sam knew that she had kept her Army Personnel file inside of it along with her journals from overseas.

"Casey… what have you gotten yourself into?" Sam asked aloud.


	3. Chapter 3

Casey was strapped to a chair. This was the first thing she registered when she came to. The zip ties were cutting into her wrists as she wiggled and pulled on them. The second thing she felt was a soreness in her neck. She was still groggy because of the sedatives.

The room was dark and the chair was hard and uncomfortable. There was a metal table in front of her and a mirror on the wall. She could see that her hair was a mess and she looked ragged. She had no idea how long she had been strapped to the chair or how long she had been unconscious. It had been noon when Casey left the park and that was the last time she looked at her watch, which had been removed from her wrist.

Casey tried to move her legs, but realized that those were zip tied to the chair as well. A slight panic started to set into her system and a pressure began building behind her left eye. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to quell the oncoming headache.

The door to the room opened and in came a man in a grey suit. He was old and

had blonde hair which seemed to be turning silver. Something about him was familiar.

Behind him an armed guard, dressed in all black, carrying an M4A1 assault rifle. Casey recognized it as the weapon some of her Special Forces friends carried. He had black hair, shaved on the side and longer on top in a bit of a skinny faux hawk. It seemed like his nose had been broken a time or two and he had a five o'clock shadow on his upper lip and jaw.

If Casey wasn't being held hostage by these people, she would have thought he was handsome, in a rugged sort of way. She stared defiantly at the armored man.

"Sergeant Casey DiMarco, age thirty-eight years old, five foot four inches, one hundred and twenty-five pounds. You served in both Afghanistan and Iraq as a Field Medic while studying to become a doctor. You received your medical doctorate when you were overseas. However, interestingly enough, you elected to remain a Field Medic," the old man said.

He set a weathered file down on the tabletop along with four black leather bound journals. Her gaze flitted to the table top and another wave of panic ran through her.

These people had been in her house. They broke her safe and had everything. Her personnel file was easy to access if you had enough pull at the VA, but the one sitting on the table was undoctored. Not to mention the journals next to it accounted for personal experience in the field.

"What a wonderful speed dating portfolio you've set up for me. Saved me the hassle," Casey said.

The old man chuckled, "So tell me, you have the skill, why not use it? You work at a small, family owned bookstore making nine dollars an hour when you could be working at a hospital making upwards of forty-five dollars an hour. Want to explain that to me?"

Casey shrugged. She needed to keep calm. She couldn't let them get to her, wouldn't let them break her. Not after everything she had been through.

"I guess I prefer a more quiet life. I've been in the action, too much of it is bad for your heart. I guess I don't have to tell you that, you seem to revel in the high life. Probably have never seen a day of action in your life, am I right, Senator?" Casey asked.

It didn't take Casey long to figure out the man in front of her was a popular Senator from up on the hill. She wasn't really into watching the news, choosing to read books on history instead, but when you lived in Washington D.C. you couldn't really escape politics.

The old man smirked and shook his head. He straightened himself up in his chair and motioned to the guard behind him.

"Sergeant DiMarco is here as our guest. Please cut her loose," the man ordered.

Casey's glare returned to the armed guard. The sedatives had worn off, almost completely, and Casey was already running scenarios in her head. Unfortunately, each one ended with her on the ground or in pain.

The guard never took his eyes off of her as he pulled out a pocket knife. He cut her feet free first and then her hands. He then moved to stand behind her, instead of the Senator. Casey knew it was a tactic to make her nervous and to be able to elimate her faster if she decided to attack or escape. Instead, she just rubbed her wrists, noting how they would be brusied and sore for at least the next few days.

A dark part of her mind supplied the idea of if she lives the next couple of days. She took a deep, quiet breath then let it out, meeting the Senator's eye. She had the everpresent feeling that somebody was watching her. It created an uncomfortable prickle on the back of her neck and her eyes locked on the guard's eyes in the mirror.

"Sergeant DiMarco, my intentions are rather peaceful, I assure you. I think we started off on the wrong foot. Please, allow us to start over; my name is Alexander Pierce. The man behind you is Brock Rumlow," Senator Pierce said.

Casey couldn't hold back the scoff this time. A wry smile found it's way onto her face as laughter bubbled out of her. She couldn't help it. This whole situation was unbelieveable.

"'Peaceful intentions?' You killed my dog, sedated me and tied me to a chair, and now one can only assume that you need me for my medical knowledge. This isn't the first time I've been held prisoner, Senator Pierce. So you might as well just kill me know because I'm not helping you with whatever dark, twisted, issues you've got going on," Casey said, her face shifting into a hard, resentful glare.

To her surprise, the Senator's lips turned up into a smile. It was unsettling to say the least. He clasped his hands together and leaned over the table.

"When you were in Iraq, you were nearly court martialed for disobeying orders to help an enemy arab give birth. Another time, you insisted on helping a young man because he was going to bleed out in the streets of a small town you were going through. He had been shot, but you refused to leave him. He didn't make it, but you wouldn't leave him to die alone," Pierce said.

"That's because they shouldn't have been made to suffer for the stupidity of their leaders. I became a doctor to save lives, not take them, although I've done my fair share of taking them too. However the people that I helped that weren't American soliders or civilians were taken into custody so they couldn't do further harm. Whatever you've got here, I've got a nagging feeling it isn't going to make any improvements to the world," Casey said.

"Quite the contrary, Sergeant. Our organization serves to better the world. If you agree to help us, you'll be making a difference in the world, putting that very expensive education to work," Pierce said.

Casey wasn't buying it. She didn't want to know what they were doing or how she could help them. She wanted to go home, go to bed, and then wake up from this nightmare. Maybe if she entertained the idea of being of use to them, she could figure out some way to escape.

"Perhaps you should meet your patient. If you still refuse to help, then Agent Rumlow here will give you what you asked for, although I can't promise that it'll be quick and painless," Pierce said.

A chill ran down Casey's spine as she saw the shadow pass over Rumlow eyes in the mirror. He was no longer looking at her like she was a threat he needed to eliminate. He was looking at her like she was a new toy he couldn't wait to get his hands on.

Casey set her expression to a hard neutral. Pierce seemed to take the silence as a surrender of sorts and stood.

"Right this way, Sergeant DiMarco. You have an asset to meet," Pierce said.


	4. Chapter 4

The Asset as it turned out was a man. He had long brown hair that brushed his shoulders, tanned skin, and bright blue eyes. He had the beginnings of a beard which only added to his rough, rugged look, but it wasn't his appearance that threw Casey off. Although the sheer muscle mass alone would have made her drool if she were at the gym. No, it was the look in his eyes. It was a seemingly blank look, one that someone who has spaced out might have, but when his eyes flicked to the three people who entered the room, something else flashed in them. Fear for a fleeting second, and then they faced forward, like he was a soldier at attention, awaiting his next order.

"This is the Fist of Hydra. He's known as the Winter Soldier or The Asset. He carries out orders and if he's not being sent out for missions, he's held here in this room, he has his own quarters for sleeping, or we return him to cryostasis. If you agree to help us, you'll be his personal doctor, doing whatever he needs done medically, and you'll be in charge of approving him for missions and taking care of him when he comes back," Pierce explained.

Casey barely registered what Pierce said. Her eyes were trained on the profile of the soldier sitting on the examination table. Casey stepped forward, only to be pull roughly from her daze by a calloused, hand gripping her shoulder tightly. Her eyes flashed to Rumlow, challenging him to do something, but Pierce raised his hand. Rumlow let go of Casey who held back the urge to stick her tongue out at him.

She moved to stand in front of The Asset. His eyes flicked to her but then quickly flicked over her shoulder. It was a common thing for soldiers due to it being rude to look a commanding officer in the eye.

The Asset was sitting in almost full tactical gear. The only thing he was missing was the weapons. His strappy vest was heavy duty with several empty clips and pockets. His left arm was completely metal. Casey had spent enough time in Iraq and at the VA to recognize a prosthesis when she saw one. His right arm was encased in a black, kevlar sleeve. His right hand had a leather glove on it and is left had a fingerless glove which his metal fingers stuck out of. His black cargo pants were form fitting and tucked into black combat boots.

Casey sighed. She couldn't believe that she was going to do this. But she wasn't doing this for Hydra. This man was familiar, but she couldn't place where she had seen him. But he needed her help. Casey could see the brokenness inside of him and she cursed Pierce for knowing that she wouldn't say no. She rationalized that as long as she didn't have a gun in her hand, she wasn't going to be hurting anybody.

She placed her hands on her hips and looked at the man on the table. Nodding her head to herself she addressed the Senator.

"Fine. I'll do it. But there'll be a few conditions," Casey started but was cut off by Rumlow.

"You're hardly in any position to make demands," he chastised.

"Excuse me? You came and found me. You kidnapped me and killed my dog in the process. I think I'm exactly in the position to be making demands. Besides, if you don't want to honor my requests, shoot me right here, right now," Casey spat.

She had the full attention of The Asset. His blue eyes were trained on her, reading her body language, not believing that Rumlow would let this small woman talk to him like that.

"That can be arranged," Rumlow said, moving to take a step forward.

Casey had popped her chin up, looking at him in defiance and daring him to do something about it. Luckily, Pierce stepped into the middle of their little argument.

"Anything the Doctor asks for, she will be given," Pierce said to Rumlow, then turned his attention to Casey. "We appreciate your cooperation. Agent Rumlow will escort you to your personal living quarters and give you a rundown of the base. You'll be provided with The Asset's medical files and you'll be called on when we need you for his pre and post op assessments," Pierce said. "You'll have a run of the base, but of course you understand that we'll have a close eye on you. You are still our prisoner."

Casey nodded. When both men had turned away and started leaving, she turned back towards The Asset, who actually met her gaze, and smirked at him before following the men out the door.

Pierce had left, leaving Rumlow in charge of Casey. Inwardly, she smiled to herself. She was going to do her best to make this man's life a living nightmare. If there was one thing Casey was an expert on, it was pushing people's buttons. She was a medic after all and it seemed like they needed her desperately, although she wasn't quite sure why. 'The Asset' as they had called him, didn't look very dangerous at the moment. Sure, he was intimidating and she was sure that if he had all of the weapons that went in all of those straps and pouches, he would be a force to be reckoned with. But stationary, he was only mildly intimidating. Surly they had a Doctor within their organization that could attend to him. And the organization's name didn't escape her attention either.

Hydra was the Nazi science division in World War Two that went rogue. Casey had learned about it in school. They tried to take over the world, but Captain America and his ever-faithful Howling Commandos had snuffed them out throughout the forties. They were supposed to have been defeated in nineteen-forty five when Captain America crash landed the valkyrie ship and killed the Red Skull. He himself was supposed to have died as well, but they found him a couple years ago and thawed him out. He was good as new, of course it was seventy years in the future, but he was a part of the Avengers with Iron Man and the Hulk. They took down actual Aliens in New York last year.

Now Casey had been kidnapped by said disbanded Nazi organization. Pierce had called The Asset the 'Fist of Hydra'. Obviously he was dangerous. But then, why did he look so familiar? And he didn't even say a single word when they were in there. It had given Casey a twisted feeling in the pit of her stomach to hear them talk about him like he wasn't even in the room.

"You'll be staying here," Rumlow said stiffly, opening a door.

Casey hadn't been paying attention and didn't realize they had come to a stop. She barely stopped herself from running into the back of the guard.

"Now what is it you think you'll need?" Rumlow asked.

Casey couldn't help the small twitch of a smirk. Oh boy was she gonna let him have it.

"Obviously I need some clothes, I can't work in my gym clothes. A bra, clean underwear, some scrubs, other clothes like sweats and some short sleeved shirts. Then of course I'll need some towels, my watch back would be nice, a stethoscope, hairbrush, hair ties, toothbrush, and some socks," Casey listed off quickly.

Rumlow looked very unimpressed. Irritation was coming off of him in waves and Casey couldn't have been more satisfied. Her mother always told her that if she was kidnapped, they'd send her back within hours with money included to never have to deal with her again.

"Anything else, Beauty Queen?" he asked, sarcastically.

"Actually yes, now that you asked. I'm hypoglycemic, so I'll need some soda cans and candy bars, preferably snickers, in my room constantly. Wouldn't want me getting sick and passing out, now would we?" she quirked her eyebrow and crossed her arms.

"What a shame that would be," he sneered. "Somebody will come and get you for chow time."

"Uh, what about my initial inspection and medical files? I have to have some background information on my patient. And I have to give him an introductory assessment, it's uniform that as a new doctor to a patient, I have to-"

"Let me set something straight for you right now, Princess. The Winter Soldier is an assassin. He's a killing machine that takes on orders without hesitation. He's not a man, he's an animal. So your little assessments are just protocal. All you're needed for is to patch him up when we come back and even that's a rare occurrence because he hardly ever gets injured. That's just how good he is. Don't mistake him for being a human being with thoughts of his own because he doesn't think for himself. He's dangerous and could kill you before you can blink. Just because Pierce thinks you're important doesn't mean shit when he's not here, so don't get too high and mighty, Princess. Accidents happen."

After Rumlow's speech, Casey was a little shaken. But she wasn't going to let that show. Instead she glared at him and put her hands on her hips.

"Whoa, downgraded from a Beauty Queen to a Princess. That was quick," she said.

Unamused, Rumlow roughly shoved Casey backwards into the room and slammed the door shut. She stumbled back and landed on the hard bed in the back of the room.

Sitting in the silence, everything finally came down on Casey. She had been kidnapped. Kidnapped by an organization that was supposed to be disbanded in the ninteen forties. Her dog had been killed too.

She took a deep, shaky breath, pulled her knees to her chest, and just let the tears flow.

 **Hi guys! I'm sooo excited that this story is being read and people are liking it!**

 **That's the end of Chapter Four.**

 **Casey's a fighter for sure, however resolve can't last forever... Also, I can't be the only one who thinks Rumlow's kinda attractive, if it wasn't for all the evilness and stuff... anywhooooo,**

 **Reviews are greatly** **appreciated! Just let me know what you think, how you felt, favorite part so far and stuffs like that!**

 **Thanks! See you next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

The door to her room slammed open and Casey jolted. She cursed herself for falling asleep. She looked up at the intruder through bleary eyes. Not to her surprise, it was Rumlow. Only this time he was wearing less gear.

"Let's go, Princess. Chow time," he said, looking at her expectantly.

Casey was going to refuse, say she wasn't hungry, maybe she could starve herself out… but right as she opened her mouth, her stomach made a loud growling noise. She felt her ears warm up and she snapped her mouth shut.

"Come on, we don't have all night," Rumlow grunted.

Casey rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Standing was a struggle alone. She had been sitting with her knees pulled up for so long that her butt had gone numb and her legs had gone stiff. As she stumbled upright, various parts of her body popped. She expected most of them, however when her knee popped and gave out, she gasped and braced herself for the impact of the floor, reaching out for Merlin out of habit.

Merlin wasn't there though and the floor never came. Instead, she found that two calloused hands had caught her. One hand held her own and the other gripped her bicep. It took three seconds for each of them to register what had happened and when it clicked, Casey jerked backwards, out of Rumlow's grip.

"You should get that looked at," he said.

Casey glared at him, "Don't act like you care."

Rumlow clicked his tongue, turned, and left the room. Casey followed him out, begrudgingly, and glared daggers at the back of his head. She took note that the facility they were in had to be underground because there were no windows on the walls. The walls themselves were white. Everything was white and looked the same. She figured it was meant to disorient people. But all it did for her was remind her of the V.A.

"Agent Carson is still out grabbing your clothes. She'll stop by later tonight. Like Pierce said, you have a run of the base, curfew is at nine o'clock, which is when I'll be coming by to make sure you're in your room. If you're not there and don't have a valid reason not to be… well, let's just say that you don't want to find out what'll happen," Rumlow said.

Casey scoffed and brushed of his attempt to intimidate her. This gained Rumlow's attention and he gave her an annoyed, sidelong glance. Casey just shook her head and crossed her arms. It was cold here. Cold was good, compared to the desert, but she felt vulnerable in her gym clothes.

They came to a T and turned left. Several people, some in tactical gear or dressed similarly to Rumlow and some wearing lab coats and button-up shirts, were moving around with trays and sitting at tables. The two groups of people were distinctly separated at tables, much like the jocks and the nerds in high school.

"This is the mess hall. Food is served at oh-eight hundred, twelve hundred, and nineteen hundred hours. You're not here, you don't eat," Rumlow explained.

Casey shook her head slightly. Flashes coming to her of hours spent in the sun, getting chow, and laughing with battle buddies. She sighed and followed Rumlow into the chow line. He grabbed a tray, but she just followed behind. They had lots of vegetables and fruits, lots of protein and nutrients, and at the very end something that had Casey's heart speeding up. When they approached it, she couldn't stop the light hearted feeling in her chest: they had chocolate cake. Because even Nazi's liked cake.

She grabbed a plate and ignored Rumlow's scoff. She grabbed a bottle of water too and followed her capture to a table. It seemed too simple to be real. She had been kidnapped earlier that day and now she was eating cake with the man who had threatened to kill her.

Casey felt awkward until a medical file was placed down in front of her. A man in his mid-twenties had sat next to her. He was wearing a white button-up shirt and dress slacks, but was sporting a black eye. His dark hair was neatly combed back and he had glasses perched on his nose.

"You must be Casey DiMarco. They said they were bringing in a new doctor," the man said.

"If by 'bringing in' you mean kidnapped off the street," Casey tossed a pointed look at Rumlow. "Then yes, that's me."

"Right… well here's The Asset's file. The translation is rough, but I didn't think you read Russian. You have fun with him, and watch him carefully, he's got a mean right hook," the man said.

He gave Rumlow a fleeting glance, then rushed off. Casey rolled her eyes and pulled the file closer to her. Russian was written on the front and when Casey opened it, it was to a full page picture of a man. His eyes were closed and it looked like the picture had been taken outside of a window. There was frost and a blue tint. The man seemed to be suspended in animation, a slight frown on his, otherwise peaceful, face.

There was no mistaking the fact that this was The Asset. The man she had stood in front of hours ago.

Chocolate cake forgotten, Casey was immersed in the file. She found that her appetite was dwindling due to the gory details. He had lost his arm and they had constructed a cybernetic prosthetic that wired into his nerves so that it functioned like a real arm. The surgery notes made it seem rough, especially since it was done in the forties. Anesthetic wasn't the best back then… and Hyrda would more than likely cut corners just to cause somebody pain.

"Are you gonna eat that?" she heard Rumlow ask.

The question broke her out of her trance. She looked up and realized that the mountain of food that had been on his plate was gone now. Casey glanced at her cake. No, she wasn't really hungry now. Not after the gory details of the file, but she sure as hell wasn't going to let him eat her cake. Not in a million years. So she found herself doing something completely blasphemous, she looked Rumlow directly in the eye, lifted the plate of cake, and threw it away in the trash they were seated by.

"Nope," she added afterwards.

 **So, a kinda, sorta filler chapter. I promise The Asset will be popping up again very soon.**

 **If you have any questions or anything, Im going to start addressing reviews and stuff down here at the end of chapters when I get them and I can answer any questions you have (so long as it doesn't spoil the story :)) I really love interacting with my readers!**

 **A thanks to everybody who has read, reviewed and/or favorited/followed the story! It makes me so happy to see people actually reading and liking the story. Literally, when I get the emails, it makes me smile, no matter how bad of a day I'm having.**

 **PhantomProducer: Thanks soo much! Your review was everything I was hoping it would be and more! I love constructive criticism. I generally go back and forth between Cap and Buck, but I love them soo much!**

 **karina001: Yes, I thought that there needed to be a little bit of comic relief because for me as a person, I'm generally the comedic relief of my family in really tense situations and I just thought that this story could get really dark and serious really quick, so I wanted people to be able to smile a little bit. And yes, I'm really looking forward to having 'The Asset' and Casey interact, it's always fun to write about social awkwardness lol Also, thank you for reviewing so early in the story the first time. Made me happy :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**(WARNING: Chapter contains dark themes, gruesome war scenes, and a depression/suicide trigger)**

Sleep was hard to find that night. Casey's mind was running a million miles a second; she had a vivid imagination and could picture the procedure that had been done to The Asset, could hear terrified, gruesome, helpless screaming, and only slightly imagine the pain he must have gone through. She relived her capture, the feeling of how helpless she was because of her injury, how twenty-one years, five tours to Iraq and Afghanistan, and Special Forces training could just fly out the window in two minutes. In the background of all of these thoughts, a catchy pop song she had heard on the radio earlier was stuck in her head. The first three lines of the chorus kept repeating themselves over and over again, adding to the agitation and making it hard for Casey to fall asleep.

Unfortunately, when she did manage to drift off, she was back in the sandbox. The unit she had been attached to was in the middle of an intense firefight. The town was small and mostly abandoned and served as a base for the enemy. Her unit had attacked and there were bodies on the ground. Casey was in full-blown adrenaline mode, trying to drag wounded soldiers away and assess their wounds. Three had been killed in the first two minutes and another had been blown back by an explosion. He was a young private and this was his first tour. Now he was laying on the ground, face and body torn up, screaming bloody murder.

Casey administered morphine to him and left him with the other two bodies to go back. When she returned a couple minutes later with an Afghan child who had been caught in the middle, the young private wasn't screaming anymore, but instead staring up at the sky with bright, wide, terrified eyes. In any other situation, it would have made Casey attempt CPR or something, but her mind was racing in an attempt to keep up with the chaos around her and she quickly wrote it off as KIA: Death by Shock.

It was as quick as blinking for Casey's mind to change the scene. It was dark out and she was sitting in a barely standing house that hadn't been blown to bits. The full battle rattle was tight and hot. She was dirty, covered in blood and dust, a shower would have been nice, but that was a luxury she didn't have.

The backup had been hit with an IED and what was left of her unit was stranded until somebody could get something out. There was only four soldiers left, including Casey, and two of them were laying on the floor, bleeding out slowly. She had long since ran out of medical supplies and it would only be a matter of time before one or both of them woke up, screaming. Casey herself had been injured, but the pain was manageable. Her knee had been blown out when she was carrying one of the wounded soldiers into the house. She was immobile, but could still administer first aid to the Private and Corporal laying five feet away from her.

The only other soldier left standing was Lieutenant Mason. Everyone called him 'LT'. He was a bright eyed, optimistic man from California. His wife had been six months pregnant when he was deployed and she was due any day now. He always had something inspirational to say and was always talking.

For the past three hours, he had been eerily silent, staring out the window with his rifle cocked and loaded. She remembered this moment so vividly. It haunted her to this day. It was the actual breaking moment for her.

A young girl, maybe seven, ran into the house. She had wide, scared eyes, and obviously didn't intend on seeing the four Americans. Terror formed on her face as LT raised his gun towards her. It happened so fast, the only noise to come from Casey was a strangled cry. The soldier then moved and stood in between the Private and Corporal on the ground.

Casey's eyes went wide and she found her voice, "What the hell are you doing?!"

The look his hazel eyes conveyed was one that would haunt Casey forever. She still saw his bright green eyes, darkened by war and fear and emptiness, everytime she closed her eyes.

"Backup's never gonna come, Sergeant. Every time they try, they get blown to hell, and I'm not gonna sit around here and wait for someone to kill me. No… I'm going out on my terms and so are they. They don't deserve to lay here in agony," LT said.

"That's not your choice to make!" Casey yelled. "They deserve a fighting chance to go home and see their families again! You have your own family waiting for you!"

"And I'd rather return to them in one piece than in several or not at all," LT said.

He pulled the trigger twice and the shots reverberated in Casey's chest and heart. She screamed and her heart was racing when he turned the gun on her. It was a Beretta M9. Staring down the barrel, the tears she had been holding in all day finally started to stream down her face. This wasn't what she signed up for. She wanted to serve and do her duty. But she didn't want to die like this, not right here and not right now, not when she had Sam to return to. Her family, even though they weren't close, was on her mind too. She had nieces and nephews and brothers and she couldn't just give up now.

"Please… please don't do this!" she pleaded.

He shook his head, gave her another haunted look, then turned the barrel on himself and pulled the trigger. A high pitched scream echoed around the small space.

Casey shot up in her bed. Her heart was racing, she was covered in sweat, and she felt bile rising in her throat. She barely made it to the small bathroom attached to the room before she vomited.

After cleaning herself up and taking a quick shower, she went to look at the clothes she had acquired last night. True to his word, a female agent had stopped by her room an hour after dinner. Agent Carson was short and blonde with blue eyes. She was solid muscle, but very pretty, and had a kind disposition. She even mentioned that she had packed some feminine hygiene products in the bag for Casey, just so she wouldn't have to ask or worry about it when the time came.

The clothes she picked up were simple, but not ugly, and she had even grabbed Casey's favorite kind of granola bar ("I recognized these as the kind you buy. I thought it might be nice to have some sense of normalcy while you're here.") even though the thought of being stalked by Hydra made Casey feel queasy again.

She settled on a dark purple tee shirt and black scrub pants with her sneakers. Her hair was whisked up into a high ponytail and her watch was placed back on her right wrist where it rightfully belonged. It was oh-seven hundred in the morning and Casey's stomach rumbled from being completely empty.

When Casey opened her door, she was startled to see an armed guard standing at her door. Rumlow hadn't said anything about being under surveillance while she was here, but it wasn't a surprise. Another man was standing there too. He was dressed in a black button up with the top two buttons undone, black slacks, and had platinum blonde hair that was slicked back.

"Ah, Doctor DiMarco, I was just coming for you," he said.

"Well, it's not like I'm hard to find," Casey said.

"Um, right. I'm Thomas and I'm going to be your assistant," he said.

"Why don't we just start with breakfast?" Casey asked.

Thomas nodded and the two went down to the mess hall. It was silent for a few minutes and Casey could tell that the man had something he wanted to say, but he wasn't saying it. Nothing bothered Casey more than that and her own anxiety was starting to eat at her.

When they went through the line in the mess hall, Casey grabbed some fruit, toast, and almost cried when she saw a coffee machine. After pouring herself a full mug of the hot, black liquid, she found Thomas and sat down across from him.

"So what's the deal with all of this?" Casey broke the silence.

"With all of what?" Thomas asked.

Casey quirked an eyebrow up, "All of this, ya'know, why do you seem so content to be here? Hydra is literally a Nazi organization. How can you be cool with all of this?"

Thomas paled about five shades. He looked around quickly, his gaze lingering on a table of guards. Rumlow was sitting among them. When he seemed content with the idea that nobody was paying attention, he leaned in close to Casey.

"You can't ask things like that… Hydra is based on one thing and one thing only: compliance. If they think you're not complying, they'll beat you into submission, mentally and physically…" he whispered.

"They kidnapped me, I'm not feeling very 'compliant'," Casey said.

"Look, just don't go poking around and asking questions. Do what they tell you and lay low-"

"And they'll let me go?" Casey asked, faking intrigue.

What was supposed to make Thomas smile, only made him look broken, empty, and there was something else in his eyes… something akin to longing. She furrowed her brow and waited patiently for his response.

"Once you come here, you'll never be free…" he said, very quietly, in a haunted voice.

It took Casey three seconds to realize that Thomas might have been here against his will too. Then another two seconds to realize that the only way she would be leaving here, would be in a body bag, especially if she kept up her attitude towards Agent Rumlow. It took five more seconds for Casey to steel her resolve.

"I'm not afraid of them. And I will escape here."

Maybe not now, or in the next couple of days. But she wouldn't spend her days here. She wouldn't die here. She would make it out and do it alive.

 **Hi guys! I had to split this chapter in half because I don't want to overwhelm everybody with a super long chapter. But they'll probably start getting longer from here on out.**

 **I went into a little more detail about her dreams than I meant to, but it kind of just started writing itself, so yeah, that ball of sadness happened. But in the next part there will be some interaction with The Asset. Also, there will be some Sam in coming chapters, but I'm trying to move time along so when we come back to Sam, he's already with Steve… maybe… not sure… I don't have a plan, I'm winging it- my life is a mess.**

P **lease review and lemme know what you think! I love and appreciate you guys!**

 **karina001: Yes, I thought that might be a great little comedic relief piece that would just add on to how sassy she is. And no, they didn't have dates in the folder because they had it doctored. Casey's only job is to be The Asset's personal doctor/medic, they don't want her asking questions. Although yes, that would have been a good WTF moment. I just don't want her to put the pieces together on who he really is yet.** **PhantomProducer: :) So you should be afraid because Rumlow doesn't have the longest fuse in the world. I'm kind of banking on the fact that because she's a medic, they weren't hurt her too bad. Medics are always treated the best when they're held prisoner. (I'm totally winging it, so I know about as much of what's gonna happen next as you do). Also, yeah, I'm sure the beginning of this chapter shed some light on a little bit of what she went through during the war. So for his file to make her cringe... yeah, it's definitely not pretty. And going with the compassion thing... well, let's just say we're going to learn a lot about Casey's personality in the upcoming chapters. Don't ever worry about long-winded things :) I love anything you'll say and I absolutely love hearing somebody break down the chapter. It kinda makes me fangirl a bit as the author. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing. Also, I have a Cap story in mind that you might like, so I'll keep you posted about that if you're interested.**


	7. AN- I'm really, really sorry!

So this is a note: I'm really sorry for not updating lately. I've been really busy. I'm on the last leg of my senior year in high school and things are really tense with both school work, prom coming up, and graduation. I'll update soon, but I just feel really guilty for not letting you guys know anything.

Please forgive me and bear with me. I am working on Chapter Seven slowly but surely and I'm actually almost done with it. I just need a little more time.

Thank you for reading the story and reading this and thank you for all of your support!

Yours truly,

Capt. Leximus


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